


for all the boys i've dreamed of - haechan

by neogotmyheart



Series: for all the boys i've dreamed of [3]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Inspired by To All The Boys I've Loved Before, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-25
Updated: 2019-05-25
Packaged: 2020-03-17 12:28:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18965254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neogotmyheart/pseuds/neogotmyheart
Summary: in fifth grade, you swore you had seen sunshine as a person. you never thought you would ever meet anyone as bright as donghyuck. now, senior year was here, love letters had been sent, and the star actor of the school had a rather unorthodox part for you to play.





	for all the boys i've dreamed of - haechan

You woke up to your best friend laying on his car horn outside your window. Shooting out of bed, you ran over to open the glass barrier and found your best friend leaning out his car window. 

“___! You’re late! Again!” Renjun yelled up at you, obviously uncaring about whether or not any of your neighbors were still asleep.

You leaned down to grab a sweater off a chair before yelling back at him. “I know. I’m sorry! My alarm didn’t go off.”

“I’m starting to think you never set it in the first place.” He groaned, climbing back into his car.

You rushed to put on the rest of your clothes, brushing your hair and teeth in order to make you look somewhat presentable. You at least looked well-rested thanks to your extra hour of sleep. You ran down your stairs, grabbing a muffin off the counter before running out the door, backpack slung haphazardly over your shoulder.

Climbing into your best friend’s car one, you found a familiar envelope sitting in the seat. Your mind flashed to a small box hidden in the corner of your closet with four tiny envelopes tucked away for safekeeping. Each one filled with unsaid feelings and vivid daydreams about a boy that you once had feelings for.

You froze in the driveway, door propped open. “Renjun…”

“I didn’t read it. It looked weird so I wanted to ask you before I tore it open. You don’t write to me ever and you especially don’t cover the envelope in hearts.” He grimaced teasingly but his words were reassuring. “I just wanted to give it back.”

You slid onto the seat, grabbing the envelope quickly, scared of what might happen if Renjun changed his mind and decided to open it.

“But, how did you get it.”

He shrugged. “Found it in the mail. It looked old so I figured one of your brothers sent it as a joke.”

“If you got this in the mail then that means other people did, too.” You looked at him, unsure of how to process this information

“I wasn’t the only one you wanted to be pen pals with? Now, ___, that’s hurtful. I thought I was special.”

You shook your head. He really must not have read the letter if he thought it was just a simple pen pal exchange. “Renjun, this is serious.”

“It can’t be that bad. What even are they?”

“Confession letters.”

His eyes grew wide, pointing at the envelope in your hand. “That’s a confession letter?”

“From freshman year, don’t overthink it.” You told him quickly. It was a small phase and you moved past it quickly. There was no need to dwell on it.

“Okay… When was the most recent one?”

“Last year to Jaemin.” The admittance was quiet. Renjun probably already knew about the way you felt with how nervous you were when it came time for chemistry but it was new to say it out loud.

“People confess to Jaemin all the time. I’m sure he’s used to it.”

You looked at him, clearly unamused. “Very reassuring, thank you.”

“Are there any others?”

“Jeno and Hyuck.” It felt weird to finally be revealing all of your crushes to Renjun. It wasn’t that you couldn’t talk to him about it and more so just that you didn’t want to. You had a tendency to fall for his friends since they were just who you happened to hang around and you didn’t want to ever put Renjun in a weird position by admitting your feelings.

“Well, Jeno will probably never mention it for fear of embarrassment and you’ll be lucky if Hyuck ever lets you hear the end of it.” He liked at you with a face that was probably his attempt at sympathy, but it didn’t mask the small smirk.

You buried your face in your hands and groaned.

“Wait. When did you have a crush on Donghyuck?”

“Fifth grade.”

Renjun started laughing. “That one’s going to be pretty bad then. What did you even say? You were like 10.”

“I don’t remember. And don’t laugh at me!”

“Okay, okay.” He shifted the car into drive. “I thought we were late before but your whole accidental mail fiasco just solidified it.”

“Renjun. I didn’t accidentally send these out. They’ve been in the corner of my closet ever since I started writing them.”

“It was probably your brothers thinking it was some funny joke.”

“How is sending out your sister’s love letters a good prank?”

“You really think Chenle and Jisung looked at them long enough to figure out what they were?” Renjun asked you and you instantly knew the answer.

It was just a simple accusation but it did make sense. You remember looking at the letters last week and there was a small chance you forgot to put them back in their hiding spot. If that were the case, it wouldn’t be surprising if they had sent them out without a second thought to what the contents may have been.

Your best friend pulled into the school parking lot much before you were actually ready. Giving yourself a mental pep talk, you got ready to go in.

“You think you’re gonna survive?” Renjun asked.

You huffed in response. Any other day, you would have participated in the teasing banter but today you had to save all your energy to deal with the possible upcoming interactions.

Once inside, you dug through your locker in an attempt to find the right books for the day when you heard a knock on the metal next to you. Looking up, you found Donghyuck leaning against the row of lockers, envelope in hand.

“Fifth grade you had quite a way with words.” He said, smiling. 

“Did you come here to mock me?” You looked at him blankly. His letter was the one you were least concerned about since it was so so long ago. You were still relatively close with Hyuck, meaning this could all easily become a joke between the two of you.

“Actually, I came to thank you.” He followed you as you began walking away from your locker. “Do you know Jiyoo?”

“How could I not? You’re attached at the lips. I think everyone knows who she is.” You grabbed your books, shutting your locker and walking away. Hyuck didn’t hesitate to follow.

“Well, we sort of broke up. She hasn’t been taking it very well but you sending me this letter-”

You interrupted. “That I wrote in fifth grade.” 

“She doesn’t have to know that.” He said, raising an eyebrow.

“Whatever. What were you saying?” You rolled your eyes and continued walking with him.

“This letter made her think I moved on, traveled to greener pastures.” He said with his arms spread. The dramatics were nothing short of what you expected from the theater club’s president. For Donghyuck, everything was a show meaning he had to be entertaining.

“Congratulations.” You teased.

He stuck his arm out, preventing you from walking any further. The look on his face always made you want to walk under it and keep walking. The only reason you didn’t was because while Hyuck didn’t mind being the center of attention, you did. You didn’t feel like dealing with whatever scene he would cause to stop you. “I just feel like I could drive the point home that I’m truly done with her if I just did one more thing.”

“And what might that be?”

“You pretend to date me.”

You looked at him, trying to act like you were unfazed by the proposition when in reality, you were very nervous. You had never dated anyone and now you were supposed to have a fake relationship? “Hyuck, you cannot be serious.”

“I am! You can make whatever guidelines or boundaries you want. We just have to tell people we’re dating.” He made it sound so simple yet you knew he had a knack for drawing people in. He would propose this idea that didn’t seem too crazy and then all of a sudden, you were neck deep in a tumultuous plan that seemed to have no exit.

“What do I get out of this?”

“Someone to hang out with that’s not Renjun.”

“I love Renjun.”

“I do, too. Great guy. He makes amazing set designs. I just mean you  _ only _ hang out with Renjun.”

You did only hang out with Renjun but it was because Renjun was the only person who tried to hang out with you. It would be nice to really start spending time with Hyuck again, but you weren’t sure this was the way you wanted to go about it. “I don’t know…”

“It only has to be until she totally gets off my back.” He pleaded with you.

It was hard to stand your ground, but fake dating someone for an immeasurable amount of time just didn’t seem appealing to you. “Jiyoo is a complete and total psychopath. I don’t think that’ll be happening anytime soon.”

“Okay. Just to the winter musical then. You can come to the show and we can break up right after.”

“That’s almost four months away.” You mused. The first show wasn’t until the middle of December and it was just now September.

“ _ Only _ four months away.” He rephrased it, pointing his finger at you. “That’s long enough to be a relationship but not long enough to be the most serious thing in the world.”

“You know what? Fine. But, I make every other rule except the deadline. Is that clear?”

“As crystal.” He smiled at you and it was just as blinding as 10 year old you remembered it. “Come to the theater room after school and we can figure stuff out.”

When he turned and left, you spotted Renjun leaning up against the wall, waiting for you in order to walk to your first class together. He looked at you, brows furrowed, obviously confused by the exchange in the hallway.

“So, what was that all about?” 

You wished you could answer honestly, especially since you needed advice, but there’s no way Renjun would ever actually approve of the plan and you didn’t want to start anything. Renjun had no problem with confrontation. “He asked me out on a date.”

Renjun stopped walking, forcing you to stop and turn back to him. “What?”

“What did you say?”

“That I’d think about it.”

“Why? You’ve seen him and Jiyoo. Do you really want to be like that?”

No, you really didn’t but surely if you were just fake dating, you wouldn’t have to worry about the ridiculous PDA. You just shrugged in response. “He’s a nice guy and we’ve always been friends. What’s the harm in one date?” The bell sounded around you, signaling that between your two conversations, you had wasted enough time to be late to class.

Renjun peered at you sideways. “Okay, fine. One date. But don’t continue going if you don’t want to.”

“I won’t! You act like I’m 12 or something.”

The two of you eventually got to class, albeit very late, and Renjun seemed distracted the whole time. You reached out multiple times to stop him from tapping his pencil on the desk. When the bell rang, Renjun left without even waiting for you. You shook your head, gathering up your stuff and leaving the room. The whole situation was weird enough already without Renjun adding to the madness.

The rest of the day flew by relatively quickly and before long you found yourself in the theater room after school. You sent Renjun a quick text telling him to head on home after Donghyuck confirmed that he could take you home. Setting down at a desk, you pulled out a spiral and a pen, writing “rules and regulations” at the top. Hyuck furrowed his brows as he watched you write.

“This will be our contract. We shoot back and forth with rules and then you and I will sign it.”

“That’s very formal.”

“I don’t want things to get messy because we didn’t lay down any ground rules.” You clarified. You couldn’t just jump into this not knowing what was expected from you. Also, just because Hyuck was the one who suggested it didn’t mean that you didn’t have your own wants and wishes.

He nodded. “Okay, first things first. We don’t tell anyone we aren’t actually dating. That includes Renjun.”   
You felt your shoulders sink. How were you supposed to lie to him when he knew you better than anyone? You would have to figure out how to twist this and fast. “Fine, but you have to take me out on dates to make it believable.”

“Okay. The first date on Friday.” He nodded before continuing. “It’s over by the winter musical.”

“And no PDA.” You add, remembering the sights of him and Jiyoo in the hallway. You grimaced at the mental pictures.

He furrows his brows. “None?”

You shook your head. “You can hold my hand. That’s it.”

“Works for me. I just need something. I can’t go from having a girl all over me to not even kissing the next person I date.”

“Will no one think you’re moving too fast?”

“Why should I care?” He asked. He had a point. It was his life and what others thought didn’t really affect his happiness. Plus, he wasn’t actually moving on. He just needed to be unavailable so that Jiyoo would leave him alone. People could say whatever they wanted but it didn’t change the truth.

You tapped your pencil against your spiral, a nervous tick you realize you picked up from Renjun. “Hyuck, did you love Jiyoo.”

He leaned back in his chair, hands resting behind his head. “I started dating her because she’s super outgoing and fun. She’s obviously gorgeous so I just went for it. I was definitely interested.”

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

“No. I didn’t love her. As soon as we started dating, she became a completely different person. She was mean and wouldn’t let me do anything without demanding she either come with me or I report to her every hour. Any time I even hinted at breaking up with her, it caused a full-blown meltdown.”

“Wait, so how did you two actually break up?”

“I had to text her and then immediately block her. I felt awful but it was the only way. She pounded on my door for about an hour that night and eventually my mom had to ask her to leave.”   
You shook your head. You never liked Jiyoo but it was still upsetting to hear about someone acting like this. This was the stuff that encouraged all the psycho ex-girlfriend stereotypes that drove you crazy. “Well, I’m glad that letter got sent then even if I’m not the one that sent it.”

“Well whoever did send it, thank them for me. And thank you. This is helping more than you realize. I didn’t want to tell you all of this and pressure you into accepting, but I’m glad you said yes.” Hyuck sighed, leaning over to grab the pen from you and sign the makeshift contract.

You had no plans of thanking the sender. “I’m glad you told me because I feel like now at least I’m prepared to deal with crazy.”

He drove you home and the two of you actually had a nice time catching up. You used to be really close up until high school when your group of Jeno, Hyuck, and Renjun split in half and went separate ways. Somewhere along the lines, the others picked up Jaemin and became an unpredictable trio. While Renjun kept in touch with the luck of similar schedules and designing sets for the theater club, you were always the odd man out. Now that you were hearing all the ridiculous stories you missed out on, you were glad you agreed to do this. It would be nice to have Hyuck back in your life and potentially Jeno, too, if you played your cards right.

When he pulled up to your house, you say Renjun sitting on the swing on your porch, flipping through the pages of East of Eden. Hyuck got out of his car, walking around to open your door for you and waving at your best friend in the process. You got up onto the porch, moving Renjun’s legs to sit next to him as you watched who would soon be your new “boyfriend” drive away.

“You made it home in one piece,” Renjun said, placing his makeshift bookmark back in the book. “It’s a miracle with how Donghyuck drives.”

“It wasn’t too bad.” You defended him.

He nodded towards the driveway where Hyuck’s car previously sat. “So what was all that about?”

“What?”

“The staying after school and having him drive you home?” He explained, eyebrows raised. 

“He wanted to hang out a little bit to see if it would make me feel better about the date.” You leaned back into to cushions of the swing. 

“Why’d he ask you on that anyway?

“Maybe the letter made him want to try things and see where it lead.” It was a dumb explanation and you knew Renjun saw through it with the was his brows furrowed slightly. 

“Oh, right. The letter you wrote when you were 10.” Renjun nodded, swinging his legs off your lap to plant his feet on the porch below

“Just because I had feelings for him when I was 10 doesn’t mean he couldn’t have had feelings for me when we were all older.”   
“I don’t know. The timing just feels weird with the recent break-up and everything. I don’t want you to be a rebound and end up getting hurt.” He sighed, rocking the swing back and forth. 

You needed a best friend that was just a little less intuitive. “I don’t think it’s like that. We talked this afternoon about it and I don’t think their relationship was what we thought it was.”

“He’s the theater club president, ___.” He stared at you blankly. “He acts.”

“Why are you being so weird?”

He shrugged. “I just don’t trust him.”

“Aren’t you two friends?” You understood the caution, but it was weird for Renjun to have such little faith in someone he was supposedly friends with. Even if he was right to be skeptical of the relationship, it was very out of character for him to act this way.

“Just because we’re friends doesn’t mean I think he’s good enough for you.” Renjun stood up, walking off your porch. “You know what? Just do whatever you want. I don’t know why I said anything.”

Before you could answer, he was already across the yard. You knew that Renjun joked about being annoyed with Hyuck sometimes, but you never really thought it was that serious. His reaction was the exact reason why you hid your crushes from him. Whether or not you actually couldn’t trust Hyuck was up for debate when you knew how protective of you your best friend could be. He was always the first to warn you about any friends you had managed to make. He was usually a good judge of character, but this situation was already much different from the others. 

The next day at school, you were greeted by another knock on your locker. You sighed, assuming it was one of two people and neither of which would cut a conversation short enough to make it to class on time. You shut the metal door and were greeted by probably the last person you had expected. “Jiyoo, hi.”

“So, why am I hearing about you sending love letters to my boyfriend?” She asked eyes like tiny daggers.

You really didn’t have the energy to deal with her today. Leaning up against the lockers, you responded. “Didn’t you two break up last week?”

“We break up all the time. It never lasts though.” She smiled at you, thinking she would come out on top at the end of the conversation.

“Right…”

“I need you to stay away from him.” It sounded very much like a threat and you couldn’t help but be annoyed rather than scared. If this was how she acted when they weren’t together, just what all did she do when the two actually were dating?

“Kind of hard to do when we have a date this Friday.”

She stared at you for a second, shock evident in her expression. “Don’t flatter yourself. Donghyuck would never go from someone like me to someone like you.”

“You probably didn’t even know my name until yesterday, but please enlighten me on the type of person I am.”

She laughs. It sounded like nails on a chalkboard and you had to keep yourself from noticeably tensing at the sound. “That’s the point. No one knows who you are. Why would he date a nobody?”

This girl really was about as superficial as you could be. It was boring and not worth your time. “I don’t know. Maybe because social status really doesn’t matter?”

It was almost as if he could sense the confrontation because as if on cue, Donghyuck rounded the corner, eyes widening when he saw you were talking to Jiyoo. He instantly put a smile on his face and walked up to you, kissing your temple. “___, can I walk you to class?”

Jiyoo stopped you from walking away. “You never walked me to class.”

“You never went to class. The only reason you’re here right now is to bother ___.” He countered, leading you off. 

You sighed as soon as you were far enough away. “She’s intolerable.”

Hyuck dropped your hand. “I know. I’m ready for her to find someone new so I can stop being dragged into her mess.”

He walked you to class, which wasn’t that big of a deal considering his class was literally next door. Renjun looked up at you from his desk before giving a small wave to his friend behind you. It felt weird to see him be somewhat friendly after hearing the way he doubted him just last night. 

You and Renjun spent the whole day avoiding the conversation of your new love interest. You convinced yourself that it was better this way. The less you talked about it, the less Renjun could dissect everything you said. It would be a lot easier once you hung out, but right now, you were being forced to make up a story and run with it. 

The rest of the week passed and soon enough, you found yourself laying on the couch Friday night waiting for Hyuck to come to pick you up. You had to skip out on the weekly movie night with Renjun, but you knew that he would knock on your window as soon as you go home anyway. Friday nights were your nights to hang out and there have only been a few times that you didn’t spend them together. 

You heard a quick couple of knocks and before you could grab the door, your mother was answering it for you.

“Donghyuck! It’s been so long! I’m so happy to see you.” She said excitedly.

He immediately smiled at her, walking in the door. “You, too, ma’am. I hope everything has been going well.”

“It has. What brings you back to our house after so long?”

“I’m actually taking ___ out for dinner. Of course, if that’s okay with you.”

Your mother’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. She had always loved Hyuck and frequently questioned where he was and what he was up to. He has been a charmer since middle school and it was nice to know that some things never changed. You did feel somewhat guilty knowing this was fake when your mom had been pushing you to date for such a long time. You swallowed the feeling and met the boy at the door.

“I don’t mind at all. Just don’t keep them out too late!”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Hyuck answered, smiling at her.

He led you out the door and to his car. “So I have a couple of things planned, but if you don’t want to go you can just tell me.”

You waited on the driveway. “Are you taking me bungee jumping or something?”

“No. It’s just some mini golf and probably concession stand food.”

“Hyuck, why would I not want to do that?”

“I don’t know. Jiyoo had a problem with everything I planned so I just thought I would give you the option.”

“I’m not like Jiyoo, I promise. And if I ever am, I need you to tell me because that would literally be my worst nightmare.”

He laughed, opening your door for you before walking around to the other side. 

Once his car started, you could hear his music playing softly in the background. “I’m surprised you’re not playing songs from a musical.” You teased.

He turned the music down. “I’ll do you one better. I’ll sing every single song from the upcoming musical acapella. Trust me, it’ll be the best thing you have ever heard.”

He started to sing as loudly as he could and despite him sounding beautiful, you reached over and turned the music up, trying to drown out his voice.

He looked at you, pretending to be hurt. “This is a betrayal of the highest degree. I share my gift with you, and you try and play some generic pop singer over me.”

You laughed. “They’re famous for a reason.”

“Well, I’m theater club president and lead actor for a reason, ___. I’m a big deal.”

“Oh yes. How could I possibly forget? I’m in the presence of a natural born star.”

“As long as you admit it,” Hyuck said, smiling.  He pulled into the parking lot and before you go out, he looked at you. “So, some ground rules about this little date.”

“We made the contract.” You reminded him.

“Oh no, not that. I was gonna bet that you’ll lose and when you do, you have to buy me dinner.” He said, smirking at you.

You put a hand on your chest, feigning insult.“I’m sorry. Did you just say I’m going to lose?”

“I did and I’m right. You will lose and I will win.” He said pointing at you before getting out of the car.

“I cannot believe you are insulting me like this when I’m on the varsity mini-golf team.” You climbed out and looked at him from over the top of the car.

“That’s not a thing, but your confidence is cute.”

“If it were a thing, I would be captain.” You huffed. 

Mini golf actually ended up being extremely competitive. You hadn’t played in years but once you warmed up with the first three holes, you were on a roll. Hyuck was adamant about keeping proper score, counting every stroke made and writing it down. You learned pretty quickly that he was prone to adding a shot to your count here or there and taking away a shot from himself. You ended up having to get your own scorecard just to hold him accountable. 

“I think we need a ref,” Hyuck said, comparing the two scorecards. You had gotten different scores. On yours, you had you winning by three strokes but on Hyuck’s, he had himself winning by 10.

“I really think it’s pretty obvious you cheated.” You laughed, taking your club back to the stand. 

“Are you questioning my integrity? Do you really think I would do something so low as to cheat at mini golf so you had to buy me dinner?”   
You looked at him for a second, not buying his act.

“Okay. I’ll buy. Not because you won, but because it’s a date and that’s the nice thing to do.” He said, patting your hand.

He came back with a pizza and the two of you sat at one of the tables together. You found yourself reminiscing on the past, laughing over old middle school horror stories. It was weird getting along so well even though it had been almost 3 years since the last time you had actually hung out with him. You slipped back into things so easily and it made you wonder why the group even split ways to begin with. 

He reached out to play with your fingers once you had both finished your pizza. You ignored the way your heart skipped at the action and had to quickly remind yourself that this was all a front just in case anyone saw. You were surprisingly disappointed. It had only been one date, but everything about it felt real. You checked your watch in order to focus on anything but his hand in yours. It had already been two hours since you first arrived. 

“What? Am I boring you?” Hyuck teased. This date was far from boring and you knew he knew that.    
“Yes. It’s only nine but I feel like we’ve been here for ages. I can’t wait to get out of here.” You answered sarcastically.

He stood up, a smirk growing. “Come on. Let’s go get some ice cream and then I’ll take you home, yeah?”

After the two of you picked up your dessert, Hyuck drove to the middle of a field by your house. The two of you sat on the hood of his car while you ate. “You know, Hyuck. If I didn’t know better, I would think this was an actual date.”

He laughed. “I think I just got so excited by you agreeing to what I had planned that I got a little carried away.”

“I had a lot of fun, honestly. Jiyoo was dumb for turning you down so much.”

He looked at you from the side. “Why haven’t you dated anyone, ___?  I had a lot of fun with you and I feel like if you put yourself out there, you would be able to find someone.”

You shrugged before taking a bite of your ice cream. “I’ve been interested in a few people. It just never works out.”

“Like who?”

“Well, you.” You said even though it was obvious. He was the recipient of your very first confession letter. 

“That’s fifth grade. It doesn’t count.”

You sighed, giving in and telling him the rest. “Okay. Jeno when we were all friends in middle school. Renjun freshman year. Then, Jaemin sophomore year.”

“When did you have feelings for Renjun? Why didn’t that ever turn into anything?”

“Nothing was worth the risk of losing him.” You admitted. After your friend group had split up and he was all you had, you knew confessing your feelings could leave you with no one. You were glad you kept it to yourself because now you were over it and having Renjun in your life still made the weird months of confusion worth it.

He nodded, seeming to understand. “Not anyone right now? I’ll feel bad if I’m keeping you from someone that could give you an actual relationship.”

You shook your head. “No. I think I just kinda gave up on the whole dating thing. Well, not gave up. I guess I just don’t care anymore.”

“I admire that. I really do.” Hyuck said sincerely. “If I didn’t care so much about relationships or what people thought of me, I wouldn’t have even dated Jiyoo, to begin with. I just thought she was everything I was supposed to date.”

His phone buzzed beside him and he checked it while groaning. He left whatever it was unanswered and returned his gaze back to you.

“Do you need to get that?”

“No. It’s Jiyoo.” He explained, looking less than pleased

“I thought you blocked her.” You remembered him mentioning it the day he told you what all happened. Maybe you misunderstood.

“I unblocked her so I could figure out when she would be showing up to my house. She’s usually nice enough to give me a warning.” He said sarcastically. He really did look so tired of the situation and you felt bad for him.

“Is she there now?”

“Yeah. She said she’s going to wait there until I get home.” He leaned up against the windshield, hands resting behind his head. “She needs to get a hobby or something.”

“Why don’t you just come back with me? Me and Renjun were supposed to have a movie night afterward and you can just crash that.” You offered. You really didn’t want him to go back and deal with Jiyoo. You really didn’t want him to end up getting back together with her just so he didn’t have to deal with this borderline stalking anymore.

“Are you sure?” 

“Yeah, of course. We went out on one date so it’s not like we’ll have to lay all the relationship stuff on heavy.”

He nodded, accepting your offer. The two of you got into his car and made it back to your place. 

Once inside, Renjun was laying on the couch. He scrolled through his phone while yelling out to you. “I guess you had a nice time. It’s been three hours.” He lowered his phone and his eyes widened slightly. “Oh, hey, Donghyuck. Didn’t know you were coming in.”

“Yeah. I’m currently hiding from a certain someone and ___ so nicely offered for me to just hang out with you.”

“Is Jiyoo at your house or something?”

“She has been every night since she saw the letter. Usually, I get home before she gets there so I can just avoid answering the door. Tonight she’s just waiting outside for me to get there.” Hyuck sighed, dropping into one of the armchairs beside the couch.

“You should get a restraining order,” Renjun said, throwing a piece of popcorn into your mouth from where you sat on the floor.

Hyuck laughed. “She’ll get bored eventually. She has a rather short attention span and she doesn’t like being ignored. I gave into it for far too long but now that I’m actually putting my foot down, I hope she just gives up.”

“What do you mean 'put up with it for too long'?”

“I’ve been trying to break up with her for months and she doesn’t let me.”

“Gross.” It was your turn to throw a piece of popcorn into his mouth and he caught it with ease. Once he looked at you, you shot him a small look as if to say “I told you so.” He rolled his eyes in response. 

“Enough about that though. She doesn’t really deserve my breath anymore. WHat movie are we watching.”

“I don’t know. It’s ___’s turn to pick.” When you opened your mouth, Renjun stuck his hand out. “Not Ponyo. Sorry. Pick something else.”

You closed your mouth, pouting. “Okay, fine. Can we watch both Kill Bills?”

“That’s four hours of movies,” Renjun responded with a deadpan expression.

You got up and turned on the TV. “We have no idea how long Jiyoo will be executing her stakeout. We have to plan accordingly.”

“Just have him stay the night.” Renjun proposed. “I always do.”

“I don’t think my mom will be cool with that since we just got back from a date.” The only reason she was okay with Renjun staying the night was because you had been friends since you were kids and had always had sleepovers.

“Fine. Both Kill Bills it is.”

Renjun fell asleep halfway through the movie, leaving you and Donghyuck awake. He had his legs slung over the arm of the chair while you leaned up against the front of it. “Does he always fall asleep?” He asked after a yawn.

“When it’s my week to chose, yes.” You answered and he let out a small laugh.

His hand rested on your shoulder and you turned your head to look at him. “Thank you for tonight. I really appreciate it.”

“Are you gonna thank me every time we hang out?”

“No. I’ll get used to it eventually. It was just nice to hang out with someone and not feel like my life was being dictated.”

It was quiet for a moment before you spoke again in a much quieter voice for fear of Renjun hearing you. “When do you think she’ll start to leave you alone?” The implied question was how long he thought you would have to keep pretending to date him.

“I don’t know. That’s kinda why I had you agree to go all the way until the musical.”

“Right, duh.” You said, nodding. If the dates kept going like they went tonight, you didn’t know if you would be able to make it until then. 

Hyuck sighed. “Well, I checked her location on snapchat and it says she’s at home. I may go home for the night.”

“Yeah, of course. Glad I could provide just a little bit of safety.”

He laughed. “I’ll see you later.”

The next few months went pretty similarly. Dates once a week that just led to more and more feelings as time carried on. It became harder and harder to stick to the rules you had outlined for yourself outside of the contract. You told yourself that if you got too attached, you would find a way to call it off. You should have called it off after that very first night, but you wanted what was best for Hyuck. Calling it off would mean exposing him to the unfiltered wrath of his ex-girlfriend. The good thing was that your feelings for Hyuck were making it more believable for Renjun. 

* * *

One afternoon when you walked into your home after getting dropped off by Hyuck, you found your brothers, Jisung and Chenle, sitting on the couch, hands folded in their laps.

“Hey. Why are you two sitting like that.”

“Our dear ___. We’re family and I just want to remind you that blood is thicker than water.” Chenle said.

Jisung continued. “We wanted to talk to you about something very important to the both of us.”

“This could have life or death consequences.”

“It’s true it could. But, we noticed how happy you are with Donghyuck so we felt like this was a great time to talk.” Jisung and Chenle were bouncing off of each other in a way you could barely follow.

You sat on the coffee table across from them and they both visibly gulped. “Spit it out.”

The two boys looked at each other before Chenle spoke up. “We sent the letters.”

You looked at the two of them. Ever since Renjun first accused them, you knew they had to be behind it. “You didn’t know what they were, did you?”

“No. We just saw them sitting on your desk with addresses on them. We sent them out and we’re so sorry. Renjun told us what they were not too long ago.”

You sighed. “Honestly, it’s fine. I don’t care anymore. You’re lucky the boys I wrote them to are nice people or you two would be dead.”

* * *

When November rolled around, you found yourself walking into the county fair, Hyuck pulling your hand and leading you through the maze of people. Last week, he had suggested on a whim that you couldn’t fake date and not go to a fair. Every couple would be going at some point meaning that you needed to be there to continue selling your fake romance.

It was hard to admit to yourself that these things were all just a strategic way out for him. Jiyoo had yet to leave him alone and so the relationship had progressed. You posted about each other on social media, went on group dates, ate with each other at lunch. It wasn’t real but your heart pounded around him anyway. 

He was funny and much nicer than you remember. Hyuck was always the one to give random teasing jabs and while you never liked to admit it, in middle school his jabs would sometimes cut a little too deep. Now you were able to brush off his teasing and give it right back to him in a way that would feel like flirting if you didn’t know the truth about what the two of you were doing. Everything had become so natural and it was hard to remember that at the end of the day, he wasn’t your boyfriend.

The dates were going wonderfully and everyone around you seemed to be buying it. Even the once skeptical Renjun now gave moderate approval of the relationship after spending enough time around the two of you. Everything was starting to feel a little too real. When you were alone, you would confide in each other about what you were each going through. Hyuck would sometimes hold your hand longer than necessary or sit a little too close to you when you were watching a movie. He would rest his head on your shoulder when there was no need to prove anything because you sat alone in the basement. Casual hangouts had worked their way into the schedule on top of the almost weekly dates. The lines were starting to get blurry and you didn’t know if you were the only one who felt that way or not. Sometimes it seemed as though he felt the same way. Then, he would come in after a random run-in with Jiyoo and suggest upping the ante. It was an incredibly painful reminder that your feelings were one-sided.

Looking at the carnival lights reflect on Hyuck’s beautiful skin, you convinced yourself that it would be okay to pretend it was real. Just for tonight, you wanted to pretend like he was holding your hand because he wanted to. He was riding these rides with you because he genuinely liked you. There was still a little over a month left for this relationship and you didn’t know how you felt about it ending. You were relieved because of the fact that your heart wouldn’t be toyed with anymore. On the other hand, it hurt because would you even still talk after this? People don’t usually buddy up to the person they just broke up with. It would be more realistic if the two of you parted ways and didn’t talk anymore.

“Is everything alright?” Hyuck asked you, snapping you out of your thoughts.

You nodded. “Yeah of course. Why?”

“I wanted to go on the ferris wheel but you’ve been tense since we started walking towards it. Are you scared of heights, ___?”

You laughed, relaxing. Even if you were scared of heights, Hyuck may just drag you onto the ride anyway. He would give you consolidation cotton candy afterward but you have no doubt in your mind he would take the slightest bit of enjoyment out of you clinging to him for dear life. “I’m not actually. But my answer wouldn’t matter would it?”

He shook his head. “I would take your fears into consideration.” His hand squeezed yours before he kept walking. 

You looked at your surroundings and couldn’t help but slip back into your thoughts. Everyone around you was either with a group of friends or on genuine dates. Everything you were doing was a lie. You stood in line with Hyuck’s arm around your waist, pulling you into his side. He talked about the upcoming musical and how everything is surprisingly coming together so nicely. Usually, there was some sort of hiccup that would cause problems, but he’s yet to reach it yet. You were too focused on the warmth of his body next to yours to formulate any sort of answer.

When you were next in line, he leaned down to whisper in your ear. “Speak now or forever hold your peace.”

You shoved him off of you playfully, stepping up to get in the passenger car. When the boy sat next to you, he instantly grabbed your hand again. The sudden jolt of the ride starting again made you both jump, but Hyuck’s hand tightened around yours. “Are you scared of heights, Donghyuck?” Spitting the question back at him brought a small smile onto his face.

“No,” he defended, looking at you. “I just, I don’t know.”

You laughed before letting yourself rest your head on his shoulder. You felt his body tense beneath you causing you to lift your head up immediately. You cleared your throat, looking out at the crowd, the different rides, the small area of food vendors, anywhere but him.

He released your hand, rubbing his own hands on the rough fabric of his jeans. “___, can we talk?”

You felt your stomach in your throat. He knew. It was only so long before he caught onto the fact that you were interested in him. You should have done a better job of hiding it. “Yeah. What’s up?”

“I know that this is all supposed to fake and we made all these rules to keep it that way. It just… It doesn’t feel fake anymore. At least not to me. Maybe I’m just reading too much into things but I want to get rid of the rules and the contract. I want to just actually try and date.”

You looked at him, not even knowing where to begin. You thought he wanted to end things because you were obviously attached. To see him so unsure and nervous was such a stark contrast to his usual confident and bold personality.

“I know it was wrong to trap you on a ride where you’re literally stuck with me for God knows how long, but I can’t pretend like I’m fine with this anymore.” He was silent for a second while your thoughts continued to race, unable to form words. “Please say something.”

But you couldn’t say anything. For once in your life, your words had failed you. You had no verbal response to his confession. You looked at him, eyes tracing over your features. His brows were furrowed as he watched you and waited for your response. Leaning in, you pressed your lips to his. He froze for a second before relaxing and kissing you back, lips moving slowly with yours. His hand moved to cup your cheek, pulling you closer to him. He broke away shortly after, kissing your nose before looking at you. “I really thought you were gonna reject me and I would be stuck on this ride for the next 5 minutes. I would really have to debate jumping out.”

You laughed. “No, that definitely isn’t necessary. I like you, Hyuck. A lot.”

“Good because I can promise that I may like you more.”

“Don’t be cheesy.” You teased, leaning in to kiss him again.

He looked at you, colorful lights reflecting in his eyes. His smile was somehow brighter than everything at the fair. “It’s hard not to be when we just had our first kiss on a ferris wheel.”

You pointed at him, the tip of your finger poking his chest. “It wasn’t at the top, though. The ride had just started moving.”

“I’ll kiss you again once we get there.”   



End file.
